September has become a major month on the aspiring Irish novelist’s calendar. That is the window when the Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair is open for entries. Described as Dragon’s Den for writers, it allows twelve winners the opportunity to pitch their manuscripts to a large group of agents, publishers and editors. Many have found… Read More The Quiet Whispers Never Stop Q&A with Olivia Fitzsimons
[UPDATED 5/11/22] Hello! Because my short story listings post from the start of the year was getting a bit long and unwieldy, I thought I would do a fresh one for the second half of the year (which means that we are, unbelievably, halfway through 2022 already – that’s mad, Ted). As ever, I will… Read More Short story competitions June-December 2022
For such a small nation, we seem to be awash with literary journals. Just this week, I noticed two brand new publications preparing to accept submissions for their very first issues. Both based in my hometown of Cork, they’re respectively called Howl and The Four Faced Liar, the latter taking its name from beloved local… Read More A round-up of Irish literary journals
Just a quick post to say that Cork’s wonderful literary salon Fiction at the Friary returns with an in-person event tomorrow (February 27). It has been sorely missed. This month is slightly different to the usual guest author format in that it will be a showcase of work from Cork Words 2. Edited by Patricia… Read More Fiction at the Friary Cork writers showcase
[Updated 2/11/2022] As I’m solely focussed on a novel right now (and struggling, at that), I’m not really keeping a close eye on the world of flash fiction. But I thought I’d share a list of the competitions that are showing up on my Twitter timeline – hope these are useful for someone. As always,… Read More Flash fiction competitions 2022
A little bit of writing news to share with you on a grey Monday – my book, Fundamental Things, made the longlist of the Caledonia Novel Award 2022. I’ve been sitting on the news for some time as the longlist was announced in early December, but the competition was being judged anonymously so I was… Read More Caledonia Novel Award 2022 longlist
Just over a year ago, I competed my first book. Then I sent it to a couple of experienced beta readers, and revised it. Sent it to some more, revised it… you get the picture. It’s currently out on submission, and I will someday do a ‘6 things’ post on the whole, complicated agent querying… Read More 6 things I’ve learned about finishing a novel
Yesterday I had an amazing bit of writing news, which is that the Everyday Kindness anthology I contributed a story to last year is to be released as an audiobook. Not only that, the book will be narrated by a whole host of actors and actresses, including [pauses for breath] Dame Julie Walters, Celia Imrie,… Read More Everyday Kindness star-studded audiobook news!
[UPDATED 6/8/22] High time for a fresh round-up, I feel. Here are the novel competitions currently open for entries, with a wide variety of prizes and judges. They range from established awards like the Bridport Prize to newcomer the Cheshire Novel Prize (which ambitiously promises feedback on every single entry!). Entering competitions like this can… Read More Novel competitions for 2022
[UPDATED 13/5/22] Happy New Year, happy new writing opportunities. January seems as good a time as any to plot world domnation through words. If nothing else, it can be useful to set deadlines in order to actually finish some the many drafts languishing in your files. And some competition organisers are so forward-thinking, you could… Read More Short story competitions 2022
Word herding 